Wide receiver Marques Colston was added to the physically unable to perform list Thursday, which means the eight-year veteran won’t be on the field for the Saints’ first training camp practice Friday.

Saints coach Sean Payton said Colston has a foot injury but should return within a week. Rookie receiver Kenny Stills, a fifth-round draft pick, should be able to practice soon after being put on the PUP list with a wrist injury.

Earlier this week, the Saints put strong safety Roman Harper, linebacker Victor Butler and cornerback Patrick Robinson on the PUP list, which means they can’t practice until they pass a physical.

Butler tore his ACL in one of the team’s final offseason workouts, and Payton said Robinson had arthroscopic knee surgery this spring. Harper is recovering from sports hernia surgery.

Payton expects Harper to be ready, soon and he said they’ll monitor Robinson weekly although General Manager Mickey Loomis said it may be late in the preseason before he’s full go.

We knew going in to New Orleans Saints training camp that the team had a variety of injuries—safety Roman Harper is dealing with one, as is rookie wide receiver Kenny Stills and cornerback Patrick Robinson.

One name we didn’t expect to see pop up on the injury list is one of the Saints’ most important players—receiver Marques Colston.

Head coach Sean Payton revealed the news during the press conference to kick off Saints training camp (per NOLA.com):

#Saints Payton expanding on injuries: WR Colston has foot ‘we’re trying to be cautious with.’ CB Robinson had knee scoped this summer and ‘progress has been outstanding.’ S Harper (abdomen) will be limited, WR Stills (wrist) will be limited. But they should participate. … And LB Butler will obviously be sidelined with torn ACL.

Payton says Colston has a foot injury and could be on PUP miss a week. Robinson is week-by-week with a knee scope.

This is a bit concerning if you’re a Saints fan. Colston has quietly been one of the NFL’s best receivers for years. Saints fans known this—the rest, not so much.

It sounds as if the coaching staff is trying to take a caution approach, which makes it seem like it could be a nagging injury. With any luck it’s one that won’t be an issues throughout the season, but this isn’t a great start.

Colston can come off the PUP list at any time during camp. Keep a close eye on this one. We’ll have the latest.

A day after Saints coach Sean Payton revealed that starting strong safety Roman Harper had undergone offseason surgery to repair a sports hernia, Harper was all smiles and taking reps with the first-team defense.

Despite some initial concerns that Harper would be limited at the start of training camp on Friday, the veteran safety said he never doubted he would be on the practice field this early.

Although Harper got a good bit of work in drills, the plan is to gradually work him back into a full workload.

Harper said Day 1 of camp went well for him. He said he was able to move around the practice field with no restrictions.

"I felt good for the most part," said Harper, who rotated with rookie Kenny Vaccaro with the starters. "The reps that I did get, I tried to move around a little bit. I'm coming along at a good pace right now.

"I'm right where I need to be. I'm right on schedule. They are going to slowly work me back in more and more."

INJURY UPDATE: While Harper was able to take part in the workout, three other Saints players -- outside linebacker Victor Butler (knee), receiver Marques Colston (foot) and cornerback Patrick Robinson (knee) -- opened training camp on the team's physically-unable-to-perform list.

Also, defensive end Kenyon Coleman (flu) and receiver Jarred Fayson (dehydration) missed the start of training camp. Payton said he expects both players to be back at practice Saturday.

Meanwhile, Colston is expected to miss up to a week of practice and Robinson could be sidelined for a couple of weeks after having his right knee scoped this offseason.

Butler, who tore his left ACL during an OTA workout in June, will not be back during training camp.

Rookie receiver Kenny Stills, who is battling a wrist injury, was able to practice, however.